Obama Calls Record Exports ‘Bright Spot’ in U.S. Economy

President Barack Obama said rising
exports are a “bright spot” in the U.S. economic recovery
while warning against complacency in the face of trade rivals
such as China and Germany.

“We’ve been such a dominant economy for a long time, that
our sale pitches and efforts have been a little more scattered”
and perhaps not as effective, the president said at the White
House during a meeting of his export council. The U.S. has
“very aggressive” competitors.

“One of the biggest bright spots in our economy has been
exports,” Obama said. He said the administration is focused on
how “do we keep that momentum going,” as negotiators try to
reach agreement on two proposed trade deals, one in the Pacific
region, the other with the European Union.

The advisory panel, which usually meets twice a year, is
headed by Boeing Co. (BA) Chief Executive Officer James McNerney. The
business leaders on the panel, appointed by the president, make
recommendations to the government on ways to increase sales and
help shape the agenda on proposed trade deals.

Obama signed an executive order in March 2010 setting a
goal of doubling exports over five years, or taking exports to
$3.14 trillion in value by 2014 from $1.57 trillion in 2009.

He may fall short. Exports last year totaled $2.2 trillion.
Each $1 billion in sales supports about 5,000 jobs, Obama said.

Trade Initiatives

Obama has pledged to remove trade barriers abroad, help
firms enter new export markets and offer government assistance
with financing to meet the export goal.

Even with a global economic slowdown, Commerce Secretary
Penny Pritzker said exports increased by $600 billion in the
three-year period ended 2012, a level equal to the combined
gross domestic product of Israel, New Zealand and Ireland.

“This is a seismic shift in exporting,” she said. There
are 30,000 more businesses exporting than there were in 2009,
she said, and “we’re on track to break an annual export record
for the third consecutive year.”

Even so, growth of U.S. sales abroad slowed to a 2 percent
annual rate in the past 12 months, Jason Furman, chief White
House economist, told the council.

“That slowdown is an import reminder that our fortunes in
part depend on the economic strength of the world, and we saw
significant economic slowdown in 2012,” Furman said. Still, it
is “starting to mend.”

Two Deals

The administration is currently negotiating two deals that,
if concluded, would cover about two-thirds of the world markets.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership among 12 nations, including
the U.S., would link an area with about $26 trillion in annual
economic output. Obama said it’s “the fastest growing market in
the world.

U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman said negotiators
are entering the final stages in the Pacific trade deal and aim
to ‘‘wrap that up by the end of the year.’’

The accord would cover trade issues in such areas as
agriculture, financial services, rules of origin and protections
for companies that compete with state-owned enterprises.

The negotiations will be among the main topics when Obama
travels to Asia beginning Oct. 6 for a meeting of the Asia
Pacific Economic Cooperation organization and the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations. All the nations involved in the Pacific
pact are APEC members.

Atlantic Partnership

The second deal is the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment
Partnership, which includes the U.S. and members of the European
Union.

Negotiators want a pact by the end of 2014 but talks may
take years. One round of talks has been held and another is set
for next month. Any trade treaty must be ratified by
legislatures on both sides of the Atlantic.

Both deals would require approval from Congress.

The U.S.’s last major trade deal with Korea began in 2006
and didn’t conclude until 2011.

The Commerce Department said today that the U.S. current
account deficit fell 5.7 percent to $98.9 billion in the second
quarter, the lowest in almost four years, as exports increased.
The current account is the broadest measure of trade because it
tracks not only sales but government transfers and investment
flows.

The President’s Export Council was created by Richard Nixon
in a 1973 executive order as an advisory panel of as many as 28
members to counsel the president on international trade. Obama
last met with the council on March 12.